Page 133 - KBHA BULLETIN 6

When VE Day came in May 1945 we could hardly believe it. The overwhelming emotion

was probably relief rather than euphoria as the war in the East still dragged on until its

abrupt end. Since their arrival in 1940, the children evacuated from Britain had been living
in South Africa. Many of these evacuees took up residence in Kalk Bay and St. James, and

I befriended some of them at school or at Guides, and some have remained friends until the
present.

In addition, there were mothers who had travelled independently with their children either

from Britain or from the East, especially after the fall of Singapore to the Japanese. The

children sponsored by the British Government were given first priority to return to the UK,

so we said a sad farewell to them as they boarded the Mauritania on 9 September 1945 in
Cape Town and we waved goodbye as they sailed away home. Some had come as quite

young children and returned home as young men and women to try to adjust to British life
with their families again.

Our menfolk eventually returned and had to try to adjust to becoming civilians once more,

take up studies and jobs, and make up for all the years they had been away under battle
conditions. One thing had not changed for me since the start of the war: a penny sucker

still cost 1d! Galloping inflation came later.

Ken McCready

For youngsters like myself, 1939 seemed like any other year. However, by the middle of
the year my parents seemed ill at ease. Something was amiss?

In mid-July we set off on a long-planned car trip around the Union, starting down the
Garden Route. At that time I don't think there were any National roads. In the close

company of our parents all the time, we came to realise their anxiety came from the threat

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